Portable folding chair



June 23, 1942.

H. w. HAWKINS PORTABLE FOLDING CHAIR Filed June 12, 1941 omer W Hawk in:

Patented June 23, 1942 UNITED STATES ATENT QFFICE 8 Claims.

This invention relates to a portable folding chair of very simple construction, which is very durable and very substantial, and which when folded will occupy a very limited space so that it can be readily transported or stored.

More-particularly, it is an aim of the invention to provide a folding chair which may be of tubular metal construction so that the chair will be very light in weight and yet very rigid and strong.

Still a further aim of the invention is to provide a folding chair provided with a'folding back rest and with a: table top or board which is pivotally mounted, forwardly of the chairand which may be raised and lowered to adapt it for use as a table inthe home, sick room, office or for picnics, or which can be used for hunting and fishing, or, as a drawing board or a blackboard stand, and in addition be put to many other uses to which said board or table top is adapted, in conjunction with the folding chair.

Still a further aim of the invention is to provide a novel chair construction wherein the supportfor the board or table top also functions as one leg of the chair and wherein all of the parts, including the back rest and table top may be readily folded in a compact manner.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawing, which illustrates a preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a top plan view showing the folding chair in a raised, extended postition,

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view, partly in side elevation of the same taken substantially along the plane of the line 22 of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal sectional View taken substantially along the plane of the line 33 of Figure 2, and

Figure 4 is a side elevational View showing the chair in a folded position.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, wherein like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the diiferent views, l designates generally the improved folding chair in its entirety, and which includes a U-shaped base I! which is adapted to rest upon a suitable supporting surface. 1 The intermediate portion I?! of the base ll forms the front portion thereof and the legs I3, of said U-shaped base I I, project rearwardly and terminate in upturned forwardly inclined end portions M which form the lower sections of the rear legs l5 of the chair Ill. The legs I5 are provided with upper sections it which are hingedly connected, at their lower ends, to the upper ends of the end portions M, as seen at l1. The hinges l! are arrangedso that the adjacent ends of the complementary portions l4 and It will not be in abutting engagement when the portions [5 are in alinement with the portions Hi.

The chair l0 also includes a single front leg l8 which is connected to and extends upwardly from the base Ii, intermediate ofthe ends of its intermediate portion l2, and which includes a lower section it and an upper section which are hingedly connected at Zl at their adjacent ends. The hinge 2| is so arranged that the adjacent ends of the sections 59 and 26 will abut when they are in alinement. The upper section 20 1s provided near its upper end with a rearwardly projecting extension 22 having an upwardly opening recess '23.

A seat, designated generally 24, includes a U- shaped frame, designated generally 25, as best seen in Figure l. The intermediate portion 26 of the frame forms the front part thereof, and the legs 2'! of the frame 25' project rearwardly from the ends of the intermediate portion 28 and terminate in forked or Y-shaped rear ends 28, each of which is provided with a downwardly'inclined portion 29 and an upwardly inclined portion 30. The downwardly inclined portions 29 are hingedly connected at their free ends to the upper ends of the complementary rear leg sections it, as seen at 3!. The seat portion 32 is supported by the seat frame 25 and suitably secured to the upper side thereof. The frame 25 is provided with a forwardly projecting extension 33 which is attached thereto intermediate of the endsof its intermediate portion 25- and which is provided adjacent itsfree end with a depending stud or pin 34 which is adapted to detachably engage the recess 23.

A back rest, designated generally 35 likewise includes a U-shaped frame, designated generally 35, the intermediate portion 31 of which forms the upper part thereof and the legs 33 of which extend downwardly therefrom. The legs 38 are provided with forwardly bent terminal ends 38 which are hingedly connected at 40 to the complementary forkedrportions 38. The hinges 49 are arranged so that when the complementary ends 39 and 39 are in abutting engagement, as seen in Figure 2, the back rest 35 will be substantially at a, right angle to the seat 24. The back rest 35 is provided with a back engaging portion ll which is suitably secured to the forward side of the frame 36.

The upper front leg section 29 is provided with a rod 42 which telescopes into the upper end thereof and which is provided with a series of longitudinally spaced openings or recesses 43 to be selectively engaged by a set screw 44 which is mounted in the leg section 29, adjacent the upper end thereof, for adjustably positioning the rod 42 relatively thereto. A table top or board 45 is provided on its underside and adjacent its center with a plate 46, the intermediate portion of which is secured to the board 45 and the ends 41 of which are bent to project outwardly therefrom to provide spaced substantially parallel ears between which the upper end of the rod 42 is adapted to be disposed. The ears 4'! are provided with alined apertures to aline with an opening 48 in the upper end of the rod 42 for receiving a bolt 49 for pivotally mounting the board 45 on the rod 42. The bolt 49 is provided with a Wing nut 50 which is adapted to be tightened for clamping the board 45 in any of a plurality of adjusted positions relatively to the rod 42 and at any desired angle relatively to the chair seat 24.

The base ll, rear legs I5, front leg l8 and the frames 25 and 36 are preferably of tubular metal construction to combine the maximum of strength with the minimum of weight. It will be readily obvious that when the pin or stud 34 is in engagement with the recess 23 that this connection will hold the leg sections l6 and 29 in extended positions and will also hold the seat 24 in a raised position to provide a sturdy and rigid construction. As best seen in Figure 2, the upper ends of the leg sections [6 do not abut against the portions 29 when the chair I is extended so that the seat 24 can be swung upwardly sufficiently to disengage the pin 34 from the recess 23. The rear leg sections I4 and 16 are also arranged so that the upper sections IB can be swung rearwardly sufficiently to permit the chair seat 24 to swing downwardly past the member 22. To fold the chair 10, the back rest 35 is swung forwardly and downwardly against the upper side of the seat 24 after which the seat and back rest, as previously explained, are swung downwardly and rearwardly against the upper leg sections l6 on the hinges 3|. The seat, back rest and upper leg sections 16 are then swung downwardly and forwardly on the hinges l1 and into the folded positions, as seen in Figure 4. The board or table top 45 is then tilted so that its underside is adjacent the outer side of the rod 42 and leg 18 and the upper leg section is then swung inwardly and downwardly to the position, as seen in Figure 4.

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and may obviously be resorted to as only a preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed.

I claim as my invention:

1. A folding chair having a base portion, rear legs projecting upwardly and forwardly from the base portion, said legs being formed of pivotally connected sections, a seat pivotally connected at its rear end to the upper ends of said legs, a front leg on the base portion and formed of pivotally connected sections, and said seat having a portion at its forward end for detachably engaging a portion of said front legs for holding the parts in an extended position.

2. A folding chair as in claim 1, comprising a chair back pivotally connected to the rear end of said seat and arranged to fold thereon.

3. A chair as in claim 1, the upper section of said front leg being tubular, said upper section being provided with a telescoping extension, means for retaining said telescoping extension in adjusted positions, and a table top pivotally connected to the upper end of said telescoping extension.

4. A folding chair as in claim 1, said seat portion being provided with a pivotally mounted back rest arranged to fold thereon, the upper section of said front leg being formed of telescoping sections, and a table top adjustably connected to the upper of said telescoping sections.

5. A folding chair comprising a pair of rear legs formed of hingedly connected sections, a base portion connected to the lower ends of said legs, a front leg rising from the forward part of the base portion and formed of hingedly connected sections, a seat hingedly connected at its rear end to the upper ends of said rear legs, and means for detachably connecting said seat to the front leg for maintaining the parts in extended positions.

6. A folding chair as in claim 5, said means including an upwardly opening socket carried by the front leg, and a depending stud carried by the seat for detachably engaging the socket.

.7. A folding chair as in claim 5, said hinged sections of the rear legs being constructed so that the adjacent ends of the leg sections will not abut when said leg sections are in extended positions.

8. A folding chair as in claim 5, comprising a back rest hingedly connected to the rear end of the seat, said back rest being arranged to fold onto the seat, said seat being arranged to swing downwardly and rearwardly to fold against the upper rear leg sections, said upper rear leg sections folding downwardly and forwardly, and said upper front leg section folding downwardly and rearwardly and onto the back rest, seat and upper rear leg sections.

HOMER W. HAWKINS. 

